Depth Charting the 2012 Offense - Wide Receivers and Tight Ends

The news never stops for the Penn State fan this offseason, and luckily 2012 has been quite a bit better than 2011, at least from a news point of view. We have a new energetic coach who is staffing up with some great coaches, both young and experienced. So while the coaching news continues, we continue to take a way-too-premature look at the 2012 team. Today, the pass catchers.

The cupboard is relatively full, stocked with as many hands as it had in 2011, with Derek Moye's spot being filled by incoming freshman Eugene Lewis. Additionally, there is a new man in charge of the squad, with former Buffalo Bills wide receivers coach Stan Hixon taking over for Mike McQueary.

While there are 10 receivers on the roster, there are question marks up and down the list. There is a lot of experience and production at the top, with Brown and Smith ranking second and third, respectively, in catches, yards, and touchdowns by wide receivers in 2011. However each of them is not without their concerns. Brown had some issues with holding on to the ball throughout the year, while Smith was commonly used in routes that just didn't suit his skill set. A new head coach, offensive coordinator, and wide receivers coach should (hopefully) alleviate these problems.

Behind them, the major question marks arise. Shawney Kersey has been a transfer rumor for at least two seasons now, and may be gone by the time this article is published. He saw early season in the slot, both out wide and in the slot, but didn't catch a ball over the last eight games and didn't play in the last three.

The other three redshirt juniors haven't seen as much time as Kersey, with Kuntz and Moseby-Felder combining for five catches in 2011. Curtis Drake has seen action at numerous positions, but his future is in jeopardy following a pre-bowl altercation with Matt McGloin that kept the Philadelphia native out of Houston. He has shown flashes of greatness on the field, and moments of stupidity off of it. If he can straighten himself out, Drake could be a valuable asset to Coach Bill O'Brien.

Three Class of 2011 members round out the active roster, with Robinson and Belton burning their redshirts and seeing some valuable playing time in 2011. Robinson has promise, and Belton is in the mold of Drake, with the ability to play almost anywhere on the field. The last spot is reserved for Pennsylvania's own Eugene Lewis, the sole wide receiver in the Class of 2012. Lewis comes to Penn State highly regarded, committing to the Nittany Lions over a list of Big Ten, Big East and ACC schools.

Forced to identify a two-deep at the position, my guess would be something like this...

...but there are just too many wildcards (Kersey, Drake) to make any reasonably educated guesses at this point.

At tight end, a position many have their eyes on thanks the the extreme production from New England Patriots tight ends the past two years, five players enter (four already on campus) and some number less than five will likely leave spring camp. Garry Gilliam should finally return from the ACL injury he suffered against Iowa in 2010, and Kevin Haplea will get a shot to live up to his potential now that Andrew Szczerba is gone. Both Szczerba and Haplea appeared in every game last season, but Szczerba was the primary guy, hauling in 12 catches. Whether or not Haplea should have been the primary guy is debatable, but after losing his appeal for a sixth year of eligibility Szczerba will not be there in 2012 to wave off Haplea.

Behind these two is a lot of unknown. Kyle Carter redshirted in 2011, while Jesse James and Brent Wilkerson will be true freshmen, and it's not even known if the two will stay at the position. James, already on campus as an early enrollee, may slide down the line as a tackle, and Wilkerson could end up on the other side of the ball.

It doesn't appear as if Bill O'Brien has his Rob Gronkowski yet, but the tight ends should be used more than the 15 catches they caught in 2011. Like the wide receivers, these guys will have a new coach in John Strollo, most recently of Ball State and "trying not to look super depressed in staff photo day" fame.

UPDATE: And right on cue, Sean Fitz of Lions247.com comes in this morning with some encouraging news about Kersey and Drake ($).

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